10 most anticipated movies of 2018

Last year was a banner year for movies, with remarkable pictures in every genre making their way to the silver screen. This year doesn’t look like it’ll be a match, but there are a few films worthy of hype—and a slew of new superhero movies.

The Post, Jan. 12
Steven Spielberg’s latest flick covers the events surrounding the Pentagon Papers, focusing on the Washington Post’s then-publisher Kay Graham (Meryl Streep) and editor Ben Bradlee (Tom Hanks) as they go head to head with the U.S. government. A Streep-Hanks-Spielberg team-up not your cup of tea? Consult a neurologist and go anyway for the gloomy modern parallels.

Proud Mary, Jan. 12
Those with an affinity for shoot-’em-ups will be into this movie about a hitwoman raising a boy she orphaned. While director Babak Najafi’s past work doesn’t inspire confidence, star Taraji P. Henson is solid. Her talent, combined with an intriguing plot, makes Proud Mary worth a shot.

Early Man, Feb. 16
If you had weird parents in the early ’90s, chances are you stumbled upon a VHS set of Wallace & Gromit and inexplicably fell in love with its British goofiness. With Early Man, W&G creator Nick Park finds himself exploring prehistoric squabbles in all their stop-motion intricacy. Park’s pretty much a sure thing, so definitely see it if you haven’t been frozen in a polar vortex by then.

Black Panther, Feb. 16Black Panther marks the beginning of 2018’s superhero onslaught, but don’t sleep on it because of Marvel fatigue. It boasts one of the best casts of any movie in years, with Chadwick Boseman returning as King T’Challa and Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o, Andy Serkis, Forest Whitaker, and Angela Bassett—to name a few—rounding out the picture. Not to mention wunderkind director Ryan Coogler running the show. The hype is real.

Isle of Dogs, March 23
After nine years, Wes Anderson returns to stop-motion with Isle of Dogs. His previous go, Fantastic Mr. Fox, was unexpectedly one of Anderson’s best movies, so this tale of exiled pooches nears the top of the must-see list.

Lean on Pete, March 30
If A24 puts out a movie, you should see it. The near-perfect production and distribution company was responsible for Lady Bird, The Florida Project, The Disaster Artist, and about 10 other standout movies last year alone, which means we can safely bet on this story of a racehorse headed for the glue factory and the boy trying to save him.

New Mutants, April 13
The mere fact that Fox is toying with different genres inside the Marvel sphere is cause for celebration. New Mutants is ostensibly an X-Men horror movie, and if it succeeds, we might finally get away from the universal world domination plot lines.

Avengers: Infinity War, May 4
So begins the culmination of everything Marvel Studios has put into play over the last decade. Infinity War will see the Avengers (and Guardians of the Galaxy) finally battling Thanos directly. And it marks the end of this phase in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, so you know they’re pulling out all the stops.

The Incredibles 2, June 15
Pixar’s playing The Incredibles 2 close to the vest, but as with A24 movies, there’s studio pedigree here. The original Incredibles is one of Pixar’s finest, so we have high hopes for the sequel.

Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Dec. 14
That’s right—another Spider-Man movie! It’s certainly a bit ridiculous, especially following Venom’s release in October, but the animated Into the Spider-Verse will flesh out the story of Miles Morales, a black, Puerto Rican web-slinger from an alternate-universe New York. There’s a rightful demand for more representation in superhero movies, and this is a step in the right direction. Though we’ll never give up on our dream of a Donald Glover Spider-Man movie.